Chocolate and Silk
by Kayarin
Summary: A series of ficlets about the sweet relationship of Sirius Black and Remus Lupin.  Watch these two best friends maybe become something more.  SLASH  SBRL
1. The Magic Word

**This will be a series of ficlets about Sirius and Remus. They'll all come to a conclusion in the last chapter, but you don't need to read one to understand the next. Warning: this is SLASH. Please, no flames. If you don't like it, don't read it. But if you do want to read, please enjoy and review at the end!**

Remus flung himself onto his fourposter with a huge sigh. Finally, he was finished patrolling the halls as a prefect. As he lay there exhaustedly, he heard the door creak open and familiar footsteps traipsed in.

"You know," Sirius's voice floated to Remus, "it's your own fault for being a prefect."

"Shut it," Remus groaned, "I'm tired and grouchy and I just want to have some peace for a bit."

"Come down and have a butterbeer with Prongs, Wormtail, and me," Sirius said. "It'll help you relax." Remus heard the teasing tone in his friend's voice.

"No," Remus muttered, "you guys will only wear me out more." He closed his eyes and continued to lay there.

"I promise we won't bother you," Sirius whined. Remus had to grin at that.

"Uh huh," he mumbled sleepily, "you'll only take advantage of me in my tired state. No thanks." He could almost feel Sirius pouting at him. He heard footsteps and thought Sirius had given up and was going down, but the footsteps got louder.

A wet nose snuffled into his limp hand. Glancing to the side, he saw a shaggy black dog looking dolefully up at him.

"No," Remus said, a little more forcefully. Padfoot began to whimper and pawed at Remus. "Puppy eyes won't work on me."

Remus closed his eyes again but groaned inwardly when one side of his bed sank a few inches. He knew Sirius wouldn't give up until he'd gotten what he wanted. Padfoot began to whine and bark, nudging Remus with his nose and paws.

"What's the magic word?" Remus sighed in defeat.

Suddenly, he felt heat emanating from right above him. He opened his eyes in surprise to stare right into a pair of silver orbs.

Remus's heart began to beat faster and a blush stained his cheeks as he realized that Sirius had changed back and was straddling him. They were only a few inches apart.

"Please?" Sirius asked softly. Remus stared into those mesmerizing eyes and couldn't speak. At Remus's silence, Sirius smiled and Remus was sure he'd never seen anything so beautiful.

"I'll take your silence as a 'yes,'" Sirius said triumphantly. He pulled Remus off the bed and dragged him down the stairs.

"Look what Padfoot managed to drag in," James grinned. "Hello, mate. How was patrolling?"

"Exhausting," Remus groaned as he fell into a chair. He buried his head in his hands as Padfoot ran madly around the common room barking excitedly. James smirked.

"So how did Padfoot convince you to come down?" James asked innocently.

"He promised not to bother me," Remus moaned. "Liar."

"My dear Moony," James laughed, "why would you ever believe something like that from Padfoot?" Remus shook his head in exasperation.

"I have no idea," Remus mumbled.

Padfoot finally stopped running and barking. He flopped onto Remus's lap, panting wildly. Absently, Remus began to scratch behind Padfoot's ears as he wagged his tail happily.

James smiled as he looked at his two best friends. Remus was petting Padfoot with his eyes closed peacefully, and Padfoot had his tongue lolling as if he were lying in heaven.

He had a pretty good idea why Remus had allowed himself to be dragged down into the common room.

**Hope you liked it! Please review and let me know what you think.**


	2. Clueless

**Chapter 2 is here! I don't usually update this quickly, but I had an idea, so here it is. I hope you like the story and don't forget to review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or plot from the story Harry Potter. They all belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.**

Sirius ducked as the enemy shot ammunition where his head had been seconds ago. With a graceful roll, he moved out of the way and aimed the strange object in his hand to point at his target.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw James aiming his weapon as well. But the enemy was too quick. It shot at James, who was hit in the stomach and fell over with a yelp of surprise. Sirius knew he only had seconds before the enemy attacked him as well.

Fumbling a little with the foreign weapon, Sirius managed to pull back the trigger. Something shot out of the front of the weapon and a large splash of red erupted when he hit his target.

"I win!" yelled Sirius, waving his arms wildly. He did a little victory dance as James got up huffily and marched over.

"You only won because the giant squid shot at me," James grumbled, mussing up his now soaking wet hair. "I was about to shoot him."

"Exactly," Sirius said smugly, "he shot you first. _I_ managed to dodge all his attacks and shoot him." He drew himself up and posed while several girls giggled and blushed.

"It's not my fault I couldn't get the bloody planeball gum, or whatever it's called, to work," griped James.

"Paintball gun," Remus corrected from his safe spot under a tree. "And nice shot, Sirius. You got him right between the eyes." Sirius grinned proudly.

"Wow," whispered Peter. The four boys looked at the giant squid, which now had a giant red blotch between his eyes from the paintball.

"James, you have to admit that's pretty impressive," Remus said. With a smirk at James, Sirius ran over and threw an arm around Remus's shoulders.

"That's right Prongsie," Sirius smirked, "I'm very impressive. Moony says so." Remus smacked him and pushed his arm off his shoulders. Sirius suddenly missed the warmth, but he didn't have time to contemplate what that meant.

James whipped up his weapon and shot Sirius straight in the chest with a green paintball. Sirius stared at the green paint running down his shirt while James whooped in laughter.

"Oh you're in for it now!" Sirius bellowed. He raised his paintball gun and went charging after James's retreating back. Remus shook his head in amusement; Sirius would be back soon.

And he was completely right. He had barely started reading again when he was grabbed around the shoulders by a frantically laughing Sirius.

"Ahah...oh, I got him in the back with two paintballs," Sirius snickered, panting slightly and clutching Remus's shoulders. "Uh oh. Looks like he's out for blood now."

Remus looked around and spotted an irate James storming toward them. Sirius was crouching behind Remus, using him as a human shield.

"Wh- why me?" Remus asked plaintively. "Don't use me as a shield. I don't wanna die!"

He craned his head around to glare at Sirius. When he could finally see him, he saw Sirius looking at him strangely.

"Er," Remus stuttered confusedly, "I mean – um, I was joking?" He glanced nervously at Sirius, who was still staring in an unsettling fashion. "You can use me as a shield if you want." He chewed his lip nervously.

"Oh, that's alright," Sirius said, grinning suddenly as if nothing had happened, "See you later, mate!" And with that, Sirius ran toward the edge of the Forbidden Forest, leaving behind a very confused Remus.

James ran by a few seconds later, and Remus almost felt sorry for Sirius. James was definitely out for revenge.

Sure enough, Remus heard many shouts and other loud noises as James entered the forest. Remus winced at the noises, his imagination going into overdrive. He hoped the two boys would be okay.

Suddenly, a dark blur bounded out of the forest and toward him. For a moment, he thought something horrible had attacked James and Sirius, but he realized that it was just Padfoot. Well, it was Padfoot half covered in green paint.

"What hap – augh!" Remus yelped as Padfoot jumped into his lap and smeared green paint all over him too. "Get off!" he scowled, pushing Padfoot off him.

But with an imploring whimper, Padfoot stared at him. He then raised a paw and cocked his head to the side. With a sigh of defeat, Remus allowed Padfoot to clamber back onto his lap.

"Well mate, it looks like you got whipped," Remus chuckled. Sirius growled a bit. He then nudged Remus's hand with his nose. Remus gave in and gently stroked along Padfoot's muzzle.

Padfoot panted in contentment and thumped his tail a few times to let Remus know how happy he was. But Sirius suddenly found himself wishing Remus were stroking something else with his strong but gentle hands.

No, Sirius thought fiercely to himself. There was no way he had just had that thought. Remus was his friend, nothing more. That's right. Remus was his friend and his friendship was more important than anything else.

But it was so nice to feel Remus's hand gently rubbing his muzzle. His foot twitched as his eyes drooped slowly closed and he relaxed. Really, it would be so nice if Remus would just stroke…

Sirius's eyes snapped open again and he jerked upright. He transformed back into himself, forgetting that he was still sitting in Remus's lap. He froze as he realized Remus's hand was still on his cheek.

"Sirius?" Remus asked uncertainly. His hand was so warm and felt so comforting.

With a shake of his head, Sirius moved off Remus's lap and sat next to him, careful to make sure they weren't touching. He grinned shakily and Remus, trying to act like everything was normal.

"It's nothing," Sirius said. That's right, he and James often fell on top of each other and ended in more embarrassing positions than that. But he had never thought anything of it.

Sirius blushed as he realized what he had been thinking. Was he crazy?

James returned from the forest covered in red paint to find his friends sitting awkwardly. He smiled inwardly when he saw Sirius's red face and Remus's confused glances. They were so clueless.

**Please review! You know you want to!**


	3. Massage

**Chapter 3 is finally here! I'm sorry it took so long to get up, but I've been on vacation. Thank you so much to all of my wonderful reviewers! I came home and nearly died of happiness when I saw all the reviews. So thank you once again. **

He was drunk. Remus looked ruefully at the four firewhisky bottles lying around him and knew that he was totally inebriated. But at the same time, it felt rather nice to be free of worries for a while.

Across from him, sprawled over the couch, James snored loudly with eight empty bottles scattered about him. At least Remus hadn't passed out yet.

Near the couch, lying on the floor, Peter was hiccupping and cackling madly to himself about the mushrooms he had burned. Remus was quite sure that Peter would be out soon too.

Pulling himself shakily to his feet, Remus began to totter across the room. The room tilted dangerously and he had barely taken two steps when he fell over.

"Why Moonykins," came an amused voice, "a little tipsy, are we?"

Remus slowly looked around, and finally spotted the source of the voice. He glared at the rakishly handsome Sirius, who had his shirt half undone and his hair in his eyes.

"Why is it," Remus asked, "that you seem perfectly fine but you've drunk almost as much as James?" He tried to sound angry, but the effect was diminished by his slightly slurred voice.

"Because I," laughed Sirius, "am Sirius Black, wonder-boy extraordinaire. And I can drink almost anyone under the table."

Remus glared and Sirius just grinned. Then Sirius got up and walked over to Remus's side. Perhaps Sirius was more drunk than he seemed, Remus thought, as Sirius weaved madly on his way over.

With a flop, Sirius dropped himself next to Remus. Or rather, where he thought was next to Remus. He actually landed right on top of Remus.

"Gyah!" Remus shrieked as Sirius squished him.

"Sorry mate," Sirius laughed, rolling off Remus to land on the floor.

Remus continued to glare, so Sirius did what he always did. He transformed into Padfoot, and gave Remus the puppy eyes. But to Remus's surprise, he quickly transformed back with a groan.

"Padfoot?" Remus asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"Ugh, my head," moaned Sirius, his hands over his eyes. "Oh, way too much firewhisky for the poor doggie. The world is spinning. I think I'm going to be sick."

"No no no nonono," Remus groaned. Sirius was laying half on top of him and he definitely did not want Sirius to barf all over him. He thought frantically of a way to keep himself clean.

"Here, maybe this will help," Remus said. He began to massage Sirius's temples, trying to ease the headache. He felt Sirius sigh and relax slightly.

"Oh, that feels wonderful Remus," Sirius sighed, shifting so that his head was in Remus's lap. Remus smiled and continued to massage Sirius's temples and slowly moved to the rest of his head.

There was something very relaxing about giving someone a massage. Remus felt himself relaxing along with Sirius as he ran his hands in soothing circles. He was almost asleep when Sirius raised himself up to a sitting position.

"Massage my back and shoulders too," Sirius demanded as he stripped off his shirt. He threw himself back on the floor, not noticing Remus's alarmed look.

Remus stared as Sirius threw his shirt to the side. How had he never noticed how handsome Sirius was before? The fire lit up Sirius's bronze skin and put highlights in his black hair. Muscles rippled slightly across Sirius's toned body.

Wait, he couldn't be having these thoughts. Sirius was his womanizing best friend. Of course he was handsome, he was the most popular boy in school. It was okay to think your friend was good looking, right?

"Please?" Sirius asked plaintively when Remus didn't immediately start. Blinking to snap out of his trance, Remus nodded.

Nervously, he placed his hands on Sirius's perfect back and began to massage. He could feel Sirius's back move up and down as he breathed. His back was so soft yet so strong.

"Harder," Sirius said in a muffled voice. Remus felt his face getting warm, but he complied. Sirius made happy little noises as Remus worked the tense kinks out of his neck and back. Remus was beginning to enjoy the feeling of Sirius's skin under his hands.

"Moony, you are a talented man," Sirius mumbled into the floor. "I think I'm in love with your hands. They do wonderful things, truly. I haven't felt anything so wonderful since – well since I can remember."

Remus stared blankly at the back of Sirius's head, his hands still massaging without his mind working. It's a good thing Sirius isn't looking at me right now, he thought. He hoped his friend couldn't read his thoughts at the moment.

"Remus, are you alright?" Sirius asked. Remus's hands jerked to a stop as he realized Sirius was looking up at him from behind his curtain of hair. "Your face is all red."

"It's probably the alcohol," Remus lied, trying not to blush harder. But Sirius just nodded and put his head back down as Remus resumed his ministrations.

Finally, Sirius sat up and drowned another bottle of firewhisky in one go. He grabbed Remus and planted a large, wet kiss on his cheek. He then promptly fell into Remus's lap, fast asleep.

"Sirius, you bloody wanker," Remus muttered touching his face where Sirius had kissed him.

Remus could feel his entire body burning now. He was sure his face would be able to glow in the dark. He tried to move Sirius off him, but Sirius was larger than he was and was a dead weight.

Eventually, Remus gave up and grabbed the last bottle of firewhisky. He took a huge gulp and then settled himself in a more comfortable position, feeling his eyelids getting heavy.

It really wasn't that uncomfortable to have Sirius sleeping on top of him.

**Please remember to review! And I hope you enjoyed it.**


	4. Chess Master

**Here's chapter 4! Thank you once again for all of your wonderful reviews. Reviews are truly what keeps me motivated to continue writing. I have a question for everyone reading this story. Do you want me to have many more fluffy chapters, or should I start winding it down and have the boys realize their feelings? Thanks!**

**Disclaimer: All things pertaining to Harry Potter are property of the goddess J.K. Rowling. Sorry, not mine.**

"Yeah!" Sirius cheered as Remus's rook threw James's knight off the chess board. He pounded Remus excitedly on the back. "Go Remus! You can do it! Beat James!"

"You're only cheering for him because I beat you," scowled James. He stared moodily at the board and moved his queen. Remus destroyed one of James's pawns with his bishop.

"Yay, Remi!" whooped Sirius. "You're going to beat silly Jamesie and avenge your poor Siri-poo!" James glared at him.

"Would you be quiet?" James grumbled. "I can't concentrate with all your noise." Sirius pouted and began to complain. So James cast a tongue tying curse.

"Mmhrmg," Sirius mumbled. He tried futilely several more times to talk, growing more frantic with each failure. Remus's eyes danced with amusement.

"That'll teach you," James muttered with a cheeky grin, "I told you not to talk."

Sirius transformed into a dog and turned to Remus. He whined pathetically and pawed at his leg. Remus ignored him for a moment but gave in and raised his wand cast the counter-curse.

"No puppy eyes," James said, smacking Padfoot. Padfoot uttered a muffled whimper and cowered as James glared threateningly. Remus grinned and lowered his wand.

The next few minutes passed quietly. Sirius thumped his tail excitedly every time one of James's pieces was kicked off the board, but as he was still unsuccessful at having the tongue tying curse removed, there was a comfortable silence in the room.

But Sirius couldn't stay still and quiet for long. He began to once again to make muffled noises and to jump around agitatedly. He seemed especially intent on antagonizing James.

"Bloody hell!" James exclaimed in exasperation after several minutes of Padfoot licking his toes and chewing his pants. "Fine! I'll take the bloody curse off you! You're more bothersome when mute, which I didn't think was possible."

"You underestimate the power of Sirius Black then," Sirius laughed as he transformed after James removed the curse. "Now Remus, you _have_ to beat James. If not for you, then for me."

"What makes you think I would try to win for you?" Remus asked jokingly. Sirius grabbed at his heart with a horrified face.

"My dear Remikins," Sirius gasped theatrically, "you wound me deeply. I feel as if the spring of life flowing through my heart has been frozen by your cold words." He glared at Remus with hurt eyes.

"You drama queen," Remus said, rolling his eyes. Sirius grinned and turned back into Padfoot. He then curled around Remus's back, his head resting by Remus's leg so that he could see the game.

The game continued a while longer, James and Remus almost evenly matched. They went back and forth, until they each had only three pieces left.

"Check," James finally said. Padfoot raised his head and growled a bit. Remus grinned and moved his knight.

"Checkmate," Remus smirked.

"What?" James burst, staring at the board. He buried his head in his hands with a groan.

"Haha," Sirius gloated, transforming back into himself, "James, you know you have to say it now." He looked expectantly at James, a huge grin splitting his face.

"You only want me to say it because you had to say it to me," James complained.

"Yup," Sirius said unashamedly, "but now you have to say it to Remus!"

"Fine," James grumbled. "Remus, you are the Chess Master." Remus smiled and bowed. Sirius changed into a dog and barked happily as he ran around the room.

"I can't believe I had to say that," James muttered dejectedly as he flopped into his seat. Remus had to strain to hear him over Padfoot's erratic barking.

"Would you shut up?" James yelled irritably at Padfoot. Padfoot stopped to nibble James's nose and continued to rampage around the room.

James growled and threw himself on top of Padfoot as he ran by once again. With a yelp, Padfoot twisted himself out from under James. He sat on James's back and barked triumphantly until James pushed him off.

"You'd better run you bloody mutt," James scowled as he raised his wand. He shot sparks as Padfoot and chased him as Padfoot ran madly around.

"I give up," he panted to Remus as he threw himself into a chair. "You deal with the stupid git." Padfoot continued to bark and leap across the room.

"Padfoot, SIT and BE QUIET," Remus yelled sharply.

Padfoot immediately stopped and crouched, his ears down and his tail between his legs. He whimpered slightly and glanced beseechingly up at Remus.

"Good boy," Remus said softly, walking over to scratch Padfoot behind the ears.

James smirked to himself as Sirius changed back to himself and Remus smacked him upside the head. It seemed like Remus was the master of more than just chess.

**Please review!**


	5. Swimming

**It's chapter 5! Thank you everybody for your reviews and input. Most people want more fluff and a bit of the boys recognizing their feelings too, so that's what I'll try to do. Relax and enjoy this next chapter!**

Remus sighed and followed several feet behind his excited friends. They were walking down a beautiful path lined with brilliantly colored flowers. Normally, Remus would greatly enjoy such a walk, but today he was dreading their destination.

"Cheer up, Moony!" called out Sirius, snapping Remus out of his reverie. "It's summer vacation! We're going to go swimming in a lake!" He whooped wildly with James, making Peter laugh.

But that's exactly what worries me, Remus thought to himself. Swimming – it meant he had to wear _swim trunks_. And that was a horrifying thought.

He watched enviously as Sirius and James ran happy and carefree, holding their towels behind them like superheroes with capes. But they were fit and had wonderful bodies and no reason to be ashamed.

Remus, on the other hand, had scars covering his body and was clutching his towel around his shoulders like a lifeline. Why did I agree to this, Remus wondered despairingly.

It had seemed like a wonderful invitation when James had asked all of Marauders to stay at his house for a week during the summer. But now, Remus wished he hadn't agreed.

He trudged the rest of the way to the lake, cursing his stupidity the entire time. His friends hadn't even let him bring a book; they were forcing him to jump in with them.

When they finally arrived, all the boys stopped to stare. The lake was breathtakingly blue and sparkled in the sun. Trees of deep green rimmed the lake and provided some shade, which cast dancing shadows. Majestic mountains tinted purple rose behind the forest.

"It's beautiful," Sirius almost whispered. Everyone nodded, and Remus felt his spirits lifting in spite of himself. It was almost romantic. Remus shook his head to clear the thought.

"Alright," James said after they had soaked in the sight for several minutes, "it's time to jump in!"

He and Sirius grinned at each other. In unison, they dropped their towels and ran madly toward the lake. Jumping wildly into the air they whooped loudly and splashed into the crystal water.

Peter went toddling in after them. Remus just sighed and picked up the three towels on the floor. He carried them over to the shade created by a large, beautiful tree.

With another sigh he dropped the towels and plopped down next to them, ensuring that his own towel was still wrapped tightly around him.

He closed his eyes and hoped that the three other Marauders would forget him in their enjoyment. But he knew it was a futile hope.

"Aargh!" Remus yelled as he was suddenly drenched in a shower of water. He looked up into the smirking face of Sirius, who had just shaken himself like a dog right above Remus.

"Oh no, Messer Moony," Sirius grinned, dripping unashamedly on Remus, "you're going to get into that lake right now." He grabbed Remus's hand and started to drag him toward the water.

"W – wait!" Remus exclaimed, panicking. He used on hand to hold his towel up while he struggled against Sirius. "Sirius, please!"

Sirius stopped and looked back at Remus, who was still hanging desperately to his towel. He turned and kneeled so he was face to face with his friend.

"Remus," Sirius started, "let go of your towel and jump in the water with me." Remus shook his head violently. "Please?"

"I'm sorry Padfoot," Remus said plaintively, "but I don't want to. I'm not like you and James or even Peter – "

Sirius stopped him with a finger over his lips. Remus's eyes widened and he felt heat flooding his body. He couldn't think of anything but the finger on his lip. Sirius removed his finger and Remus immediately missed his touch.

"Remus," Sirius said softly, "you're ashamed of your scars aren't you?" Remus stared at Sirius in surprise.

"Wha – how?" Remus spluttered. It was as if Sirius had read his mind.

"I know you," Sirius smiled wryly, making Remus's heart jump. "But you don't need to be ashamed."

"Sirius," Remus said forcefully, "I'm a mess. I look horrible. You mates don't need to see all my scars." He glared defensively at Sirius.

"But Moony," Sirius whined, "I wouldn't care if you were the ugliest bloody person in the world. I want to go swimming with you."

He pouted at Remus and widened his eyes pleadingly. He could tell Remus was beginning to waver. Gently, he loosened Remus's grasp on the towel and pulled it away, ignoring the part of his mind screaming that this was like stripping Remus.

Remus felt the towel being taken away, but he couldn't get the energy to protest because he was drowning in Sirius's silver eyes. Their faces were only a few inches apart, and Sirius had his hands on either side of Remus.

Remus felt his breath hitch as a warm hand touched his chest. He was sure Sirius could feel his heart racing under his hand.

"But you're not ugly," Sirius said from far away, "Remus, you're beautiful."

Remus was sure he had heard wrong. But he was distracted when Sirius traced a finger along his scar that ran from his chest to his navel. Everything began to spin and he was ready to faint.

"Now," Sirius grinned, completely oblivious to his effect on Remus, "you're coming in the water." He sprang to his feet and grabbed Remus's hand again.

Remus stumbled behind Sirius obediently, his mind still spinning wildly. The feel of Sirius's finger running down his scar was replaying over and over in his head.

He didn't snap out of his daze until he belly-flopped into the icy water. When he resurfaced, he heard his friends laughing hysterically. Putting on a scowl to cover his own grin, Remus splashed them.

It means nothing, Remus told himself stubbornly as a full-fledged water war began. It was just Sirius being Sirius. Nothing special about what happened.

With those thoughts, Remus turned his attention to the fight. He dove underwater and grabbed Sirius's ankles, dragging him down. They thrashed their way back up, laughing and tussling.

James shook his head as he looked between his two friends. It was so obvious, yet they both remained in the dark. Each was convinced the other could never like him. How thick were they?

With a grin, James returned to the water fight. He would have fun watching them.

**There you have it. Please remember to review!**


	6. Morning After

**And here's chapter 6! I'm going to try to put up one more chapter before school starts. Once school begins, it will probably take me much longer between chapters; I'm really sorry about that. I hope everyone's enjoying our Sirius/Remus interaction here! Aren't they just adorable? And please remember to review!**

Sirius groaned as a ray of sunlight burned his eyes and woke him up. He slowly opened his eyes and took a moment to get his bearings.

The windows were boarded so only a few rays of light penetrated the cracks. The floor was dusty and the furniture broken. A four poster bed lay on the side of the room.

He was lying on his stomach in the Shrieking Shack, and judging by the light, it was now dawn. He suddenly remembered what he was doing there and jumped to his feet, ignoring his screaming muscles.

He limped over to the bed and looked down to see Remus sleeping uneasily. Remus was covered in scratches and bite marks, some from Sirius and some from himself. Sirius looked down at himself and noticed the marks covering his own body. It had been a hard night; the worst full moon in a long time.

It made Sirius ache to watch his friend suffering. He wished he could take some of Remus's pain away, but he didn't know how. He was overcome with a desire to hug and protect his friend.

Instead, he reached down and gently shook Remus's shoulder.

"Hey, Moony," Sirius said softly, "it's time to go back to the castle." Remus stirred but didn't open his eyes.

"So tired," Remus mumbled. "Can't move." Sirius sat down on the edge of the bed and Remus opened one eye just a crack.

"Come on," Sirius grinned, "Madame Pomfrey will have a fit if you don't get back to the castle soon. I'll help you."

Sirius helped Remus to his feet and slowly began to lead him to the door. Every time Remus winced as one of his injuries hurt him, Sirius felt the same pain. It was an excruciating walk just to the doorway of the room.

"Where're James and Peter?" Remus asked as he weaved uncertainly.

"They went back early," Sirius said as he steadied Remus.

"I hurt them, didn't I?" Remus stated, stopping to stare with anguish at Sirius. Sirius wouldn't meet his eyes. "Tell me."

"You almost got Peter, so James jumped in the way," Sirius started hesitantly. "You scratched James up pretty badly, but Peter's okay and James should be fine. When the moon receded, they went to the Hospital Wing, and I said I would take you back."

Sirius stopped and looked anxiously at Remus, who suddenly swayed and nearly fell. With a curse, Sirius caught Remus right before he crashed to the floor. He lifted Remus with a grunt and continued down the tunnel.

Remus gasped as Sirius swept him off his feet, literally. If his own body was any indication, Sirius must be exhausted and worn out, yet he was carrying the werewolf.

Remus wanted to protest and was afraid Sirius would get more injured. But when Sirius shushed him, he could do nothing but relax his throbbing body. Besides, it was so comforting to be held in Sirius's strong arms.

But when they reached the entrance under the willow, the blast of cold air roused Remus. He could feel Sirius panting and his arms trembling, so he insisted on walking himself.

The two boys supported each other as they made their slow way to the castle. Remus sighed in relief when they finally reached the hospital wing.

"Go in first," Sirius said, surprising Remus, "I'll wait down the other hall for a few minutes then come back."

Sirius turned and began to stagger away. Remus stared in confusion, swaying and missing Sirius's support.

"What?" Remus asked dazedly. "Why aren't you coming in with me?"

"I'm not supposed to know you're a werewolf," Sirius grinned weakly. "Go on, I'll be there in a minute." Remus stared at his friend's back. He was so lucky to have such wonderful friends.

Remus pushed open the door and walked to Madam Pomfrey. The sooner he was in, the sooner Sirius could get help.

He lay on a bed as Madam Pomfrey fussed over him. He knew he looked horrible, but he was more worried about Sirius. He should have forced Sirius to go in first.

He was fighting sleep when the door suddenly burst open and a familiar voice came loudly to his ears.

"Hullo, lovely," Sirius smirked at Madam Pomfrey, "care to help a gentleman this morning?"

"Mr. Black?" Madam Pomfrey inquired as she closed the curtains around Remus's bed. Then she noticed Sirius's condition and became all business.

"Sit," she commanded as she led him to a bed. She began to clean his wounds and tsked under her breath. "What happened?"

"Ah well," Sirius began grandly, "I fell down the stairs." Madam Pomfrey raised her eyebrows unbelievingly.

"These look like scratches," Madam Pomfrey said suspiciously.

"You see," Sirius said vaguely, "one of the stairs was broken and the wood scratched me up." Madam Pomfrey nodded, not looking convinced.

"Well, you're all patched up," she said. "You look like death though. Take this sleeping draught and stay here for a bit." She handed him a vial of purple liquid and bustled off to the back room.

Sirius put the vial on the nightstand and gingerly lifted himself from the bed. He walked softly over to Remus's bed and opened the curtain.

Remus lay there, fast asleep. Sirius had to smile at the image of his friend's half open mouth and flyaway hair spread everywhere. He reached out and brushed a strand of hair from Remus's forehead.

Remus's skin was so soft. He let his finger drift down Remus's cheek bone and down to his lips. He traced a scar and wished with all his heart that he could take some of Remus's pain away.

James quietly opened the door, and just quietly backed out of the room. He left the door open a crack and peeked inside.

"Remus," Sirius whispered, leaning forward to speak into Remus's ear. Remus stirred lightly, and Sirius leaned back. Remus settled back down, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

Sirius felt his chest tighten at the carefree smile. He wished Remus would smile like that at him, a smile for him alone.

"Remus, I," Sirius paused uncertainly, "I don't know what this feeling is."

And throwing caution to the winds, he bent down and kissed Remus lightly on the forehead. With pink cheeks and fingers to his lips, Sirius walked back to his bed and took the sleeping draught.

Outside the door, James sat down and smiled to himself.


	7. Ice Cream

**I managed to finish this before school started! So here's chapter 7 for everyone. I'm really sorry, but the updates will probably be less frequent once school starts. I'll still be writing this though, so no worries! **

**Also, I wanted to let everyone know that if you have requests or something you want to see, let me know in a review and I'll try to use it. Ideas will be really helpful when I'm absolutely exhausted from school and unable to get my creative juices to flow… Thanks for all of you support!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Sorry I've forgotten this the past few times.**

Remus stared incredulously at Sirius's grinning face. He was certain he'd heard incorrectly. Sirius would never ask him something like that.

"You want what?" Remus spluttered.

"I want you to go out with me," Sirius said with a happy grin. He had no idea why Remus was having a hard time understanding him.

Remus opened and closed his mouth like a dying fish. Sirius cocked his head to the side in concern, wondering if Remus was okay.

"You want _me_ to go out with _you_," Remus said slowly, after his mouth had been working silently for a minute.

"Yep!" exclaimed Sirius as he bounced around the room. "It's the end of the summer, and it's boring here. We should go to Diagon Alley and have some fun! We need to get out of this house."

"Oh, right," Remus said dazedly. Relief and disappointment mingled and spread through him. Sirius was _not_ asking him out on a date; they were just going to go to Diagon Alley to pass the time.

"So are we going?" Sirius asked excitedly. Remus looked at him and nearly melted at the sight of Sirius's hopeful expression. How could he resist that look?

"Alright," Remus agreed. "But what about James and Peter? Shouldn't we wait for them?"

They were staying at James's house for the last week of summer, but James and Peter were practicing Quidditch at the moment. Or James was practicing Quidditch while Peter followed and cheered.

"Nah," Sirius said dismissively, "I'll just leave a note for them and they can catch up when they get back." He grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled an illegible note for James to decipher.

Remus shuffled his feet nervously. This is not a date, he repeated silently to himself. He then mentally slapped himself. Why was he thinking like this anyway? Who said anything about a date?

"Alright, let's go!" Sirius said as he grabbed Remus's hand. Remus felt a wave of heat flash across his body at Sirius's touch. He was thankful Sirius was too intent on leaving to notice.

Sirius stopped suddenly, and Remus crashed into his back and landed ungracefully on the floor. With a rueful grin, Sirius helped Remus back to his feet.

"Sorry, mate," Sirius apologized. "But here we are! Let's floo to there."

Remus just nodded as Sirius grabbed a handful of sparkling green powder. He threw it into the fire and they stepped in with a call of "Diagon Alley!"

Sirius had his arm wrapped around Remus's waist to make sure they stayed together. As fireplaces flashed by, Remus snuggled a bit closer to Sirius's chest. He blushed slightly as Sirius unconsciously held him a little tighter.

They finally arrived and stumbled out of the fireplace and into the crowded street. Remus realized he was still clutching Sirius's shirt, and quickly let go. But Sirius just grabbed his hand.

"This is great!" Sirius said enthusiastically. He dragged Remus around the various shops as he exclaimed loudly about the exotic items. Remus followed bemusedly, adding some sarcastic comments when Sirius became too enthusiastic.

"Ooh, look!" Sirius exclaimed loudly. Remus winced as everyone in the vicinity turned at Sirius's obnoxiously loud voice. He turned to look where Sirius was pointing.

"Fortesque's Ice Cream Parlour?" he asked dubiously.

"Let's get ice cream!" Sirius said excitedly, dragging Remus into the ice cream shop.

Once inside, Sirius proceeded to squeal and point at the flavors like a little kid. Remus sighed and wondered faintly why he put up with his childish friend. It made him feel like an old father.

"Remus," Sirius said, bringing Remus out of his reverie, "what flavor ice cream do you want? It'll be my treat." He smiled at Remus, dazzling him.

That's why I put up with him, thought Remus. He tried hard not to drown in Sirius's silver eyes. He suddenly felt an urge to ruffle Sirius's perfect hair, just to be able to touch it.

Why did his best friend have to have such a powerful effect on him? Cursing to himself, Remus dragged his eyes from Sirius and pretended to look at the ice cream flavors while trying to clear his head.

"Um, chocolate?" Remus said uncertainly. Chocolate was always good and he hadn't checked any of the flavors.

"How did I know that was coming?" Sirius chuckled. He smiled at Remus again. "You're a real chocoholic you know?" He then turned and bought two ice cream cones.

Remus felt his stomach doing backflips again. Damn. He really didn't want to ruin his friendship with Sirius. But that was getting hard with the way his thoughts kept turning. Why did Sirius have to be so perfect?

"Moony, here's you ice cream!" Sirius said with a flourish. He handed Remus a cone with two scoops of chocolate ice cream stacked on top. Remus smiled absently and took the cone.

"Thanks, mate," Remus mumbled.

"You alright?" Sirius asked worriedly. Remus swore under his breath. Sirius knew him too well.

"I'm fine," Remus said a little too cheerfully. He took a bite of his ice cream and instantly felt better. Chocolate always had that effect on him.

Then he looked over at Sirius. Sirius also had a double scoop cone of chocolate ice cream, and the way he was licking it made Remus nearly drop his cone.

Quickly averting his eyes, Remus mentally berated himself. Damn damn damn damn! He needed to get away, think of nuns, take a vow of chastity, anything to get his mind off of Sirius and out of the gutter. When had he started to have these thought?

He took another large bite of ice cream, hoping the coldness would distract him. He savored the sweet flavor and turned back to Sirius, feeling a little more normal.

"Remus," Sirius said with a lopsided grin, "you have ice cream on your face." Remus blushed and raised a hand to his face. Obviously, he had taken too large a bite of ice cream.

"Here, I got it," Sirius said, leaning over to swipe a finger across Remus's cheek. Remus felt his face burning and tried desperately not to think of Sirius's hand on his face. Glaciers, tissue paper, owls, anything but Sirius gentle hand on his hot face.

But his thoughts all came to a screeching halt when Sirius licked the finger that had wiped ice cream off Remus's face. Did he have to look so bloody seductive?

"We can't be wasting ice cream now can we?" Sirius smirked. "If I were Padfoot, I'd lick off you face too, but since we're in public I can't transform and I think it would be a little to out there for me to lick your face like I am."

He then returned to licking his own ice cream while Remus sat, completely dumbfounded. He could feel the heat emanating from his face and was surprised that his ice cream hadn't melted into a puddle from simply being near him.

"Remus," Sirius chided, "you'd better start eating again or it's going to drip down you hands. I might just have to lick you hands then." He said the last with a lecherous wink.

"R – right," Remus stuttered. He began to furiously lick up the melting ice cream, careful to not make eye contact with Sirius. He knew Sirius was joking, he always acted like this. So why did it make him feel so different from before?

He was so distracted that he didn't realize ice cream was beginning to drip down his chin. Sirius raised an eyebrow at his flustered friend.

"Remus," Sirius grinned, "you have ice cream on you chin."

Outside the ice cream parlour, James snickered as Sirius leaned forward to wipe ice cream off the chin of a very red Remus. When would they figure it out?


	8. Snow

**I'm so sorry to everyone who has been waiting for this story to be updated! School has been killing me, so I apologize for my long absence. Please, enjoy the chapter! **

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is property of JK Rowling and Warner Brother Studios. I have no claim on HP characters whatsoever.**

Remus sighed contentedly as he stared up at the patches of starry sky visible behind the dark clouds. Snowflakes drifted lazily to settle around him and all along the grounds of Hogwarts. The crescent moon was hidden behind a cloud, creating a hazy glow in that corner of the night sky.

Remus shivered slightly in the cold but didn't want to move. He could feel his extremities going numb, but he was too comfortable to care.

"Moony?" a voice called out into the silence. "Is that you?"

"Hullo, Padfoot," Remus replied, without moving or looking over at his friend. He continued to stare at the sky as he heard Sirius sit down beside him.

"Remus, aren't you freezing?" Sirius asked worriedly as he noticed tremors traveling though Remus's body.

Remus turned his head slightly so that he was looking at Sirius rather than at the sky. He was immediately struck by Sirius's silver eyes, which seemed to capture the light of the stars.

"I'm fine," Remus said softly as he turned back to look at the sky. He heard Sirius snort softly, disbelieving. He knew Sirius could see right through him – he knew him too well – but he didn't know what else to say.

He heard rustling noises but ignored them until Sirius suddenly lay down so that their sides were melded together. He stiffened for a second, but then relaxed as Sirius conjured a blanket to cover them both.

Sirius was so nice and warm. Unconsciously, Remus snuggled closer to Sirius's warmth, noting how perfectly their bodies fit together. They lay in comfortable silence for a few minutes, watching the snowflakes drift slowly to the earth.

"What are you thinking about?" Sirius finally asked. Remus didn't immediately answer, but Sirius knew he just needed some time to gather his thoughts.

"Life," Remus replied quietly, "life after Hogwarts. School is almost over, Sirius. What are we going to do once we graduate? What will I do?" He continued to stare at the tiny bits of falling sky.

Sirius propped himself up on his elbow so he could better see Remus face. He felt his chest tighten at Remus's wistful and lost expression.

"You'll find something," Sirius said reassuringly, knowing that Remus was thinking about his little 'condition.' "Who knows," Sirius smirked, "maybe you'll become a professor here at Hogwarts. You could secretly teach a whole new generation of pranksters!"

Remus chuckled slightly, eyes crinkling in mirth. Sirius was sure he had never seen anything as beautiful. 

"You forget," Remus teased, "I would probably encourage them to be goody-two-shoes like I used to be." He smiled up at Sirius, who was grinning like a maniac.

"But you're such a pushover, Moony" Sirius snickered. "You know you would be secretly rooting for them to prank Peeves or Slughorn."

Remus grinned, but then turned pensive again. Sirius traced the contours of Remus's face with his eyes, wishing he could relieve some of his friend's uncertainty.

"What about us?" Remus asked so softly, Sirius almost missed the question. "What will happen to us, the Marauders?"

"We'll always be friends," Sirius said forcefully. "The four of us, we'll always be together. We'll always be the Marauders." He looked straight into Remus's eyes, trying to make him understand.

Remus looked desperately into Sirius's captivating eyes, trying to take strength from Sirius's conviction. Slowly, he lowered his eyes and turned his head to the side.

"But things change," Remus whispered. "What if we – " He was suddenly cut off as Sirius straddled him, an arm on either side of his head.

"I will _always_ be here for you," Sirius all but growled, "and nothing will ever change that." He stared down at Remus, willing him to believe. Remus looked up at him, framed by the falling snow, trying to rid his uncertainty.

Sirius stretched out a finger and smoothed Remus's wrinkled brow. He gently brushed a strand of hair out of Remus's face, tracing his cheekbone. Finally, his hand stopped on Remus's cheek and didn't move.

Remus stared up at Sirius, eyes flashing with mixed emotions. Their faces were close. Honey colored eyes stared into silver ones. Neither one seemed to breathe.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Sirius lowered his head. Their lips were so close, Remus could feel Sirius warm breath on his lips. He closed his eyes waited breathlessly, feeling his body tingle with icy heat.

Sirius brought his head down a few more inches. Their lips brushed lightly, sending a jolt of pleasure down both their spines.

Cupping Remus's cheek in his hand, Sirius kissed him again. He kept their lips together longer, deepening the kiss, savoring Remus's sweetness

Remus lifted a hand and tangled it in Sirius's silky hair, keeping them locked together. He wrapped his other arm around Sirius's neck. Shivers ran across his body, but they were from pleasure, not cold.

When they finally broke apart, Sirius kept his hand on Remus's cheek. He brushed the pad of his thumb across Remus's lip, holding Remus's hand with his free hand.

"I'll never leave you," Sirius said, "because I love you." Remus looked up into the loving eyes of his best friend. Finally, he believed.

"I love you too."

**So what do you all think? I had originally planned to write quite a few more chapters, but I like where the story has gone. I think this will be the last chapter, at least for now. I hope you enjoyed the story, and thank you to everyone who reviewed or read this! **

**Rin**


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